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Stories, Photos, etc. to help us get through the winter...

Opening Day is a loooong way away. Post any stories, photos, etc to help us pass the time through the long winter. I'm thinking about the historic stuff, anecdotal, maybe the emotional side of the game. You know, the part of baseball that has woven itself deep into the fabric of the nation like no other sport has been able to do. The stories that make you smile... Or pieces of baseball history that make you say, "wow"...

I'll start with one from my son, now 8, and a fine ball player in his local rec league. An All-Star in both Spring and Fall ball. His Fall Ball team was mediocre, but improved greatly as the season wore on, reaching the championship game after a favorable draw. My boy batted lead off all year and was one of the defensive stars, unassisted double plays at 1B when the runner took off not expecting him to catch the line drive, the only kid who caught outfield flies, that sort of thing. He loves the game... Throwing a tennis ball off a door to himself all winter long, and religiously playing baseball on PS3.

The team he faced in the Championship game was 10-2, actually an All-Star team from a neighboring Spring League who did not have enough players for a Fall League of their own. We were beaten 14-6 and were never in the game. He got a game ball for four hits, a couple runs, several RBI and a sweet backhand shorthop scoop in the dirt while playing 1st.

At the car, the eyes started to water. I thought he might have been upset they lost, with dissapointment on missing out on the big trophy rather than the second place medals dominating his thoughts. (His team won it last year)

When I asked him if he was sad that they lost, fully expecting to tell him the All-Star team situation he said...

Proof of a very little-known investigation back in the mid-1930s - following Addendum XXI of the Constitution which repealed prohibition - spearheaded by Kenesaw Mountain Landis when suspicions arose along with the increase of offense in the great game. If there was one thing he wasn't going to stand for, it was a new scandal.

Landis, with the aid of U.S. Attorney General Homer Cummings, began an investigation following a series of games in which Babe Ruth was seen stumbling into the dugout after his at-bats and between innings. He also slurred his speech a few times during post-game interviews. Certain players - especially stars - were becoming quite large in the midrift, and even though MLB and the fans themselves turned a blind eye, the game was becoming a mockery of itself.

A third party was brought in to do interviews. His name was Heinrich Pitchell. He put together a detailed report known now as the Pitchell Report in which his findings revealed a rather large population of the players being involved in these acts.

The compiled list of offenders was much larger than anybody expected - with quite a few possibly Hall of Fame candidates included. This would have been disastrous as the Hall was just being opened and this list implicated quite a few of those were were highly considered for enshrinement.

With the knowledge of what could transpire from the fanbase, Landis decided to have the report voided in the hope that things would either just go away, or that the acceptance of alcohol now that it was legal to the public would take over and the players would be looked at as sympathetic characters.

Many point to this era as the birth of the term "beer muscles" that is still sometimes used today.

I'll never forget the moment, that's for sure. When we got home he wanted to play catch.

He has played coach pitch Spring Ball and Fall Ball at ages 6, 7 and 8. Those six seasons combined with a year of tee ball make seven... He tells people "I've played seven seasons of baseball in my life so far.". Average height for an 8 year old (perhaps a little undersized) most people politely say "wow", or "that's great" to him and probably wonder what he is talking about.